Some
of the $10 million worth of cocaine seized as part of "Operation
Caso Dorado."

(New York-NY)-John P. Gilbride,
Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration's
New York Field Division and Michael J.
Garcia, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New
York, announced the arrests in Colombia of seven defendants, including
corrupt Colombian police officers and a corrupt employee of Avianca
Airlines, in connection with an indictment charging them with smuggling
more than $10 million worth of cocaine through the El Dorado International
Airport in Bogotá, Colombia, for importation into the United
States.

"Narco-terrorism is a real threat to the security of the United
States and we must never let our guard down," said Gilbride. "This
operation sends a strong signal to traffickers worldwide that the international
drug enforcement community will continue to aggressively pursue any
potential compromise to airport security."

The arrests announced today
were the result of “Operation Caso
Dorado,” a joint investigation conducted by the United States
Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) in New York and
Bogotá, Colombia, and the United States Attorney’s Office
for the Southern District of New York with the cooperation of the United
States Department of Homeland Security, Bureau of Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (“ICE”) and Colombian and Mexican law enforcement
authorities.

More than ever, the public
must be able to rely on the integrity of the law enforcement and
airline personnel responsible for the safety
of airline passengers and shipments,” stated Mr. Garcia. “When
such officials allow smuggling of contraband destined for the United
States, they violate our criminal laws and endanger our national security,
and they will face justice in an American courtroom."

According to the indictment,
from approximately August 2005 until December 2005, representatives
of Colombia’s notorious Norte
Valle Cartel, including former high-ranking Colombian police officials
such as MOLINA-TRIANA, CARDONA and ROMERO-PADILLA, recruited active
members of the Colombian police responsible for El Dorado Airport security
operations, as well as Avianca Airlines employees at El Dorado Airport’s
cargo facility, to permit the smuggling of cocaine from Colombia to
Mexico and ultimately into the United States.

The indictment alleges that between October 14 and 17, 2005, corrupt
Colombian police officials and Avianca Airlines employees permitted
409 kilograms of cocaine, worth more than $10 million on the streets
of New York City, to pass through security at the Avianca Airlines
cargo facility at El Dorado Airport without detection. MARIN-CASTRO,
an employee of Avianca Airlines at El Dorado Airport, knowingly processed
the false paperwork to move the cocaine through the Avianca Airlines
cargo facility en route to Mexico City and the United States, it was
charged.

According to the indictment, PLAZAS-SILVA and AVILA, active CNP patrolmen
stationed at El Dorado Airport, passed the cocaine through security
and guarded the shipment of drugs for three days in the Avianca cargo
facility until the drugs were sent to Mexico City. As set forth in
the indictment, on October 17, 2005, the 409 kilograms of cocaine were
transported aboard an Avianca flight to Mexico City, Mexico, where
they were seized by Mexican law enforcement personnel.

An additional amount of approximately 552 kilograms of cocaine worth
more than $10 million dollars was seized yesterday by Colombian authorities
during the execution of a search warrant from a warehouse used by this
organization.

If convicted, the defendants face a maximum sentence of life in prison
and a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. The indictment
also seeks forfeiture from the defendants in the amount of $10 million,
based on their roles in conspiring to import cocaine into the United
States. The defendants are being held in Colombia pending submission
of formal extradition requests by the United States.

The prosecution is being
handled by the International Narcotics Trafficking Unit of the United
States Attorney’s Office for the Southern
District of New York. Marc P. Berger and Kevin R. Puvalowski are in
charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and
the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.